Youth tobacco use hasn’t been this high since 2000, according to the latest survey. | |
Dear John, In just two years, we've seen two decades worth of progress against tobacco go up in sickly-sweet vapor. We're facing a new epidemic of youth nicotine addiction driven by surging youth use of Juul and other e-cigarettes, which have become by far the most commonly used tobacco products among youth (27.5% among high school students and 10.5% among middle school). It's equally clear that flavors are driving this problem. The vast majority of kids who use tobacco products start with a flavored product. | |
How do we stop the growing crisis? We leverage our partnerships, elevate community voices, and stick to our three-part strategy: - Advocate for policies to reverse this epidemic, especially by prohibiting flavored e-cigarettes
- Build a nationwide grassroots movement to demand change
- Launch hard-hitting communications campaigns to spread the word about this escalating crisis and stand up to companies like Juul
On September 10 of this year we launched a new project, Protect Kids: Fight Flavored E-Cigarettes, to do just that. If you haven't already explored the Protect Kids website, joined the email list or followed the initiative on Facebook and Twitter, I encourage you to do so. Protect Kids is your entry point to the nationwide movement tackling the crisis head on, from the White House to the State House on down to City Hall. | |
We have our work cut out for us in 2020. The latest CDC survey lays bare the challenge: After decades of progress reducing youth tobacco use in the U.S., 31.2% of high school students and 12.5% of middle school students – 6.2 million kids altogether – used tobacco products this year. We’re confident we can halt the epidemic and reverse the trend, but not without the support of millions of people like you standing up with us to say enough is enough! The future of our kids is worth more than tobacco industry profits. Thank you for joining us in this fight. Sincerely, | |